Title: Mindless Eating

Content Area(s): Health/Biology
Topic: Nutrition
Short description: The size of the dish that we eat from affects how much we eat. Participants who were eating from self-refilling bowls ate more than those eating from normal bowls and they did not believe they had eaten more and didn’t think they were fuller than those eating from normal bowls.

Claim: How much we eat is partly determined by how empty our plate or bowl is.

Keywords: psychology of eating
Difficulty of Concept: Easy

Reading Level (Pit Stop 8 Article):

Flesch Reading Ease: 58.7
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 10.3
Lexile: 1260

Next Generation Science Standards:

MS-ETS1 Engineering Design
MS-ETS1-1. Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.

Common Core State Standards Connections:

ELA/Literacy
RST.6-8.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations descriptions.
RST.6-8.8 Distinguish among facts and reasoned judgment based on research findings, and speculation in a text.
WHST.6-8.1 Write arguments focused on discipline-specific content.
WHST.6-8.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational text to support analysis, reflection and research.
SL.8.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions(one-on-one, in groups, teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 6 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Vocabulary Words: none

Topic of Game Introduction Video: Data
Description/Application of Game Introduction Video:
This brief movie is used to introduce the concept of data before playing the scenario about amount of food eaten and bowl size in the Reason Racer game. Data is generally thought to be observable or measurable evidence that supports or refutes a claim. It is a component of scientific argumentation and usually involves both quantitative and qualitative information. Students must carefully review information given in support of a claim when making a decision to accept or reject that claim. Before playing the game, students could discuss the difference between qualitative and quantitative data.
Link to Game Introduction Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F06J_xWq4oY



Full Text of Article:

Believe it or not, the size of the plate or bowl that we eat out of is one of the primary factors that affect how much we eat. Brian Wansink, PhD, director of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab, recruited fifty-four people to participate in a study involving self-refilling soup bowls. The participants were seated at a table and each given a bowl of soup. Half ate from a normal bowl and the other a self-refilling bowl that filled from underneath without them knowing it was happening. Participants who were unknowingly eating from self-refilling bowls ate more soup than those eating from normal soup bowls. Even though those with self-refilling bowls ate 73% more, they did not believe they had consumed more, nor did they perceive themselves as more full than those eating from normal bowls. It appears people use their eyes to count calories and not their stomachs.

Mindlesscloud.jpg

References/Sources:

  1. Giblin, C. . "The perils of large plates: waist, waste, and wallet." Cornell University Food and Brand Lab. http://foodpsychology.cornell.edu/outreach/large-plates.html
  2. Wansink, B., & van Ittersum, Koert. (2006). "The visual illusions of food: Why plates, bowls, and spoons can bias consumption volume." FASEB Journal, 20(4), A618. Abstract: http://www.fasebj.org/cgi/content/meeting_abstract/20/4/A618-c
  3. Wansink, B. Painter, J. & North, J. (January, 2005). "Bottomless bowls: Why visual cues of portion size may influence intake." Journal of Obesity Research, 13(1), 93-100. PDF retrieved from http://www.mindlesseating.org/lastsupper/pdf/bottomless_soup-OR_2005.pdf
  4. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI). (September, 2013). "Serving sizes and portions." People Science Health. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan/eat-right/distortion.htm
  5. Oches, S. (January, 2011). "A Super-Sized Dilemma." QSR Magazine. http://www.qsrmagazine.com/health/super-sized-dilemma
  6. Wansink, B. & Chency, MS. (April, 2005). "Super bowls: Serving bowl size and food consumption." Research Letter: Journal of the American Medical Association. 293(14): 1727-1728. http://foodpsychology.cornell.edu/pdf/permission/2005/SuperBowls-JAMA_2005.pdf

Additional Content:


Author: Ethan Rodehorst & Matt Krehbiel